


And To All A Good Night

by Ink_Gypsy



Series: Casey/Zeke Holiday Universe [3]
Category: The Faculty (1998)
Genre: M/M, holiday fics, manips, very merry cz xmas box
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-01
Updated: 2016-01-01
Packaged: 2018-05-10 18:58:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5597086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ink_Gypsy/pseuds/Ink_Gypsy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Casey and Zeke go back to the homeless shelter on Christmas Eve, and Zeke plays an unexpected role in the festivities.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And To All A Good Night

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Very Merry CZ Xmas Box celebration at Live Journal. Manips by me.

Before his friendship with Casey Connor, Zeke Tyler didn't even know Herrington had a homeless shelter, much less where it was located, but he'd spent part of Halloween there to please Casey. It wasn't half-bad, being with a bunch of kids who appreciated not only the candy, but their costumes, and it made him feel guilty for not appreciating what he had, what he'd always taken for granted, even though possessions didn't take the place of a loving family, something all of the kids at the shelter seemed to have.

Zeke freely admitted that he'd enjoyed volunteering, but couldn't deny that he'd liked what came after much better. Slow dancing with Casey at Aces, where the bouncer at the door didn't give them grief for being underage as long as they didn't drink, and ending the night making out with Casey in the GTO before dropping him off at home.

That first kiss on Halloween had been a revelation, and now that he knew Casey returned his feelings, Zeke didn't mind taking it slow. He was sure Casey didn't have any experience with girls, much less guys, so he didn't want to rush things. Passionate kissing, with his hands roaming under Casey's tee-shirt had produced gasps and moans from Casey, and had gotten Zeke pretty worked up, too, but he'd stopped things from going any further because he didn't want their first time to be fumbling in the backseat of a car. He'd wait until Casey was ready, no matter how long it took. 

Thanksgiving dinner with Casey's parents had been a step in that direction. Zeke could be charming when he put his mind to it, and he felt Casey would feel more comfortable if his folks got to know him. Mr. Connor was obviously clueless that he was anything but his son's friend, but Zeke was sure he saw recognition in Mrs. Connor's eyes, and more than that, approval. Even if she didn't acknowledge it, a mother was normally more sensitive to her son's emotions, often realizing their son's true sexuality even before the son himself did, and Zeke wanted her to be on his side when the time came that her husband was finally in the loop about his relationship with Casey.

A relationship was something Zeke had never seen in his future, but a lot had changed, including Zeke himself. Wanting to be with Casey had done that. Caring about another person more than he cared about himself was certainly new to him, but Zeke liked how it made him feel. Change was hard, but it was so worth it when he saw the difference just their friendship had made in Casey, who had blossomed from the kid who wouldn't stand up for himself against the school bullies to someone who walked the Herrington High halls proudly. It might have been because Zeke was usually walking beside him, but that didn't matter. 

Now that he knew what a generous heart Casey had, Zeke wasn't surprised when Casey told him he'd be going back to the homeless shelter on Christmas Eve to give the kids there as much of a happy holiday as possible. The Police Department had organized a toy drive, and Casey was going play elf to the man who was playing Santa. Casey's normal addendum to Zeke following his announcement that he was volunteering was, "You don't have to go with me," and Zeke's usual answer was that he wanted to go. He did put his foot down about wearing one of the elf hats Casey had bought for the occasion.

Casey was fine with that and told Zeke, "I think the kids will be more interested in the presents they get than what you're wearing when you hand them out."

Casey was already wearing the elf hat when they arrived at the homeless shelter, and it made every child who saw him smile.

[](http://s755.photobucket.com/user/elwoodlovesirish/media/elwoodlovesirish053/Casey%20In%20Elf%20Hat%20Cropped%20Blur.jpg.html)

"You're short enough the kids probably think you're a real elf," Zeke joked, earning him a playful elbow to the ribs from Casey.

One of the local Christmas tree lots had donated a tree, not the biggest, but not as anemic as Casey had expected, considering it was free. A long table had been set up with construction paper, scissors, crayons and bottles of sparkles to allow the children staying there to create their own ornaments. There was even a huge bowl of popcorn and thread to string it on, hoping to prove, Zeke supposed, that old-fashioned, homemade decorations could be just as nice as store-bought ones. The kids were half-heartedly participating, but it was obvious that they were more interested in what packages would be under the tree than the tree itself. There were none there now. _Santa_ would bring them with him when he arrived.

Casey and Zeke, along with some of the children's parents and six other volunteers, all female (none, not surprisingly, from Herrington High) were there to help the kids with their artwork. Someone had brought in an old boombox on which Christmas carols were playing, trying to make the mood more festive, but it didn't seem to be working. Then Casey began singing along. He didn't have the greatest voice, but what he lacked in talent he made up for in enthusiasm, and soon some of the children and parents joined in until everyone was singing, including Zeke, which surprised and delighted Casey. The gathering had more of a party atmosphere now, and in between songs, there was lots of chatter and laughter as the kids readied their construction paper masterpieces for the tree. The popcorn chains were shorter than they should have been since the majority of the popcorn had been consumed rather than strung, but no one seemed to care.

Casey had brought his camera with him again, as he had on Halloween and Thanksgiving, and took pictures of the kids as they hung their ornaments on the tree, promising to bring them copies of the photos. 

"Thanks for doing this," Casey whispered to Zeke between choruses of _Deck The Halls_ , "and I promise, we can leave as soon as Santa gets here."

"It's fine, Case," Zeke told him, though he doubted Casey believed him.

Once the tree was decorated, even the cake and ice cream the local Carvel had donated couldn't keep the kids from getting impatient for the arrival of Santa Claus and his bag of presents. Casey went to the office of Mrs. Caldwell, the shelter's Director, and found her at her desk, looking frustrated. "The kids are getting antsy," Casey explained. "When's Santa going to get here?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. My husband was going to do the honors, but he just called me. His car broke down and he's two town's away, still waiting for the tow truck."

"Fuck!" Casey blurted out, then clamped a hand over his mouth. "Sorry. It's just that the kids are going to be so disappointed."

Mrs. Caldwell smiled. "I've heard the word before, Casey, and I agree, the kids will be disappointed." She paused as if she was considering something. "Unless…" 

"You have an idea?" Casey asked.

"Maybe. The gifts are already here, in the storage room, and so is the Santa suit. All we need is someone to wear it."

"I'll do it," Casey volunteered.

"I appreciate the offer," Mrs. Caldwell said, "but the suit won't fit you. We rented a suit that would fit my husband, and he's much taller than you are."

"How tall?" Casey wanted to know.

"Over six feet, why?" Casey's uncontrollable giggling had Mrs. Caldwell raising her eyebrows. "What are you thinking, Casey?" she asked.

"That I might have found a replacement Santa for tonight. Don't do anything until I get back."

Casey found Zeke at the Christmas tree, placing the children's ornaments on the upper branches they couldn't reach. "Where've you been?" Zeke asked.

"With Mrs. Caldwell," Casey explained. "There's a problem and you're just the one to fix it."

"What kind of problem?"

"I'll show you," was all Casey said, then grabbing Zeke by the sleeve, he dragged him back to Mrs. Caldwell's office.

When Mrs. Caldwell saw Zeke, she broke into a huge grin. "You're perfect!" she practically sang.

"Perfect for what?" Zeke wanted to know. "Will somebody tell me what's going on?"

"My husband was going to play Santa Claus tonight," Mrs. Caldwell explained, "but his car broke down."

"So you want me to go get him," Zeke surmised.

"No, Tyler," Casey said gleefully, "we want you to take his place."

Zeke caught on right away and immediately said, "No fucking way." Like Casey had, he looked at Mrs. Caldwell in apology. "Sorry about the language, but I can't."

"Come on, Zeke," Casey pleaded. "You don't want to disappoint the kids, do you?"

"There's no one else?" Zeke asked hopefully. 

In answer, Mrs. Caldwell brought out the red suit and held it against Zeke. "You're the only man here that's my husband's height. The pants would be too long on everyone else."

"But the top's huge!" Zeke complained.

"It has to be," Casey explained, "to leave room for the pillows."

"Pillows?"

"For his belly, of course," Casey said, as if it was totally obvious. "Dude, did you forget that Santa's a jolly _fat_ man?"

One look at Casey's eager, hopeful face and Zeke knew he'd lost the battle. "Fine," he said finally, "but no one ever hears about this, okay?" He pointed to Casey's ever-present camera, hanging, as always, around his neck. "And no photographic evidence."

Casey pouted. "Come on, Zeke. Every kid needs a photo with Santa. And it's not like they're going to show them to anyone you know."

"Fine," Zeke said again, throwing up his hands. "I give up." He turned to Mrs. Caldwell. "Can I have some privacy while I suit up?"

"Of course," Mrs. Caldwell agreed. "Thanks for doing this, Zeke."

"Like I had a choice," Zeke muttered after she'd left the room.

"Maybe it'll be fun," Casey offered as he helped Zeke dress, "and think how happy you'll make the kids."

"Okay, okay," Zeke said as he adjusted his fake white beard. "Let's go this over with."

Santa Zeke was a big hit with the kids, who each took a turn sitting on Santa's lap to receive their present, while Casey continuously snapped photos, seeming to derive as much pleasure from Zeke's performance as the children.

After all the gifts were given out and the kids were playing with their new toys, Zeke made a discreet exit into the Director's office, returning ten minutes later sans costume and facial hair. Casey was watching the kids from a table on the other side of the room, and Zeke sat down beside him, looking extremely pleased with himself. "Tell the truth," Casey dared, "you had fun."

Zeke shrugged. "It wasn't that bad."

Casey accessed the camera's viewer, flipping through the photos he'd taken until he found one of Zeke alone, holding some of the wrapped packages in his arms. Even the fake beard and mustache couldn't disguise the fact that he was smiling. He showed it to Zeke and announced, "Pictures don't lie, Tyler."

[](http://s755.photobucket.com/user/elwoodlovesirish/media/elwoodlovesirish063/Zeke%20Playing%20Santa%20Smile.jpg.html)

Zeke looked down at the image. "Okay," he admitted, "it was actually kind of fun, but if you ever repeat that, I'll deny it."

Casey grinned. "Your secret's safe with me."

To end the celebration, Mrs. Caldwell gathered the children around the Christmas tree and read Clement Moore's _The Night Before Christmas_ aloud to them.

After she'd uttered the last line, _And to all a good night_ , Zeke decided it _had_ been a good night, a holiday made special, not only because of what he'd done for the children here, but because he had shared the experience with Casey. As they put on their coats and left the shelter, headed for more grownup fun at Aces, he hoped there would be many more shared experiences in the future.


End file.
